YouTube star Logan Paul apologises for video which appears to show suicide victim
A YouTube star has apologised after posting a video online which appeared to show the body of an apparent suicide victim.
Logan Paul's vlog was filmed in a forest in Japan which is known to be a frequent site of suicides.
In the video, which was taken down from the 22-year-old's YouTube channel just hours after it was posted on Sunday, Paul goes into the forest to investigate reports of it being haunted by the ghosts of the dead in Japanese mythology, but soon comes across the body of a man hanging. The man's face is blurred.
Paul, along with friends he is with, appears shocked, but also make jokes.
When a male friend says that he does not "feel very good", the YouTuber responds: "What you've never stood next to a dead guy?"
In the video, Paul also states that: "Suicide is not a joke, depression, mental illnesses are not a joke."
The vlog has drawn intense criticism online, with people branding it "inexcusable, disgusting and disgraceful", while others have said the video left them feeling "sickened".
Celebrities and other YouTubers have taken to Twitter in response to the video, with Breaking Bad star Aaron Paul tweeting that it "disgusted" him, adding that "suicide is not a joke".
American YouTuber and television Meghan Camarena said Paul's actions "broke her heart".
While YouTube and television presenter Carrlyn Bathe attacked Paul and his team for allowing the video to go online where children could see it, and questioned their thought processes.
Paul, who has more than 15 million subscribers to his YouTube channel, has since apologised for the video which he called a "mistake".
In a tweet, older brother of former Disney star Jake Paul said he made the video because "I thought I could make a positive ripple on the internet... I intended to raise awareness for suicide and suicide prevention".
He continued that he had got "caught up in the moment without fully weighing the possible ramifications" and that "it won't happen again".
However, some believe that the Ohio-born star's apology did not go far enough, with Game Of Thrones actress Sophie Turner branding Paul "an idiot", accusing him of "mocking", and calling his apology "self-praising".
Signs in the forest in which the video was filmed urge those considering taking their own lives to think about their families and contact suicide prevention associations.
Official figures of the numbers of suicides in the forest are not made available as the Japanese Government is seeking to reduce the forest's association with suicide, but in 2003, 105 people took their lives in there.
If you are in distress or need some support, the Samaritans are available 24 hours a day on 116 123 or visit their website.